Bring a blanket, pack a picnic, and maybe throw a coat in the bag too, because Quantum Theatre don’t stop for rain. Somewhere near you this week, Peter Rabbit and his cousin Benjamin are about to sneak into Mr McGregor’s garden again, and it’s going to go about as well for them as it always does.
The touring production, an adaptation of two of Beatrix Potter‘s best-loved tales, kicked its week off in Suffolk, two performances at Nowton Park on Monday, one at noon and another mid-afternoon, before the whole thing packed up and moved north the same evening for a six o’clock show at Nottingham Castle, which is a fair amount of travelling and setting up for one company to manage in a single day. Today it’s Shrewsbury Castle’s turn, and from there the tour keeps moving right through the weekend, working its way across six counties before it’s done.
The story itself hasn’t changed since Potter wrote it. Peter and Benjamin know full well they’re not meant to go anywhere near McGregor’s garden, sneak in anyway, and end up caught in a net, chased by a snarling cat, and eventually face to face with McGregor himself, before Old Mr Bunny gets involved in getting them back out again. Quantum Theatre, who previously toured a Jemima Puddle-Duck adaptation to National Trust sites last year, run this one at roughly two hours including a twenty-minute interval, performed outdoors on lawns at castles, historic houses and parks rather than in a conventional theatre.
The full run of dates:
- 4 August – Nowton Park, Suffolk, 12noon and 3.30pm (already performed)
- 4 August – Nottingham Castle, 6pm (already performed)
- 5 August – Shrewsbury Castle, 3pm (today)
- 6 August – Hatfield Forest, 1pm
- 6 August – Moira Furnace, Swadlincote, 3pm
- 7 August – Uppark House, Petersfield, 2pm
- 7 August – Morden Hall Park, 11.30am and 2pm
- 8 August – Morden Hall Park, 11.30am and 2pm
- 8 August – Stubbings, Maidenhead, 2pm
- 9 August – Shenley Park, Radlett, 2pm
- 9 August – Fishbourne Roman Palace, 5pm
Morden Hall Park gets two full days of performances rather than a single stop, which tracks given it’s one of the more accessible National Trust sites within London itself. Fishbourne Roman Palace closes out the week on Sunday, putting a Roman villa up against a Lake District author’s rabbits, which is exactly the kind of mismatch that somehow always works at these outdoor summer shows.
Tickets and exact pricing vary by venue, most are bookable directly through the individual site rather than through Quantum Theatre itself, so it’s worth checking with whichever location is closest before turning up with the picnic blanket.